Once you meet with your guide at the port of Kusadasi, you will take the minivan, waiting for you in front of the port, and will be on the way for Ephesus for half an hour.
When we reach in Ephesus we start to explore this well-preserved ancient city. It was a city in ancient Greece on the coast of Ionia, 3 kilometers (1.9 mi) southwest of present-day Selçuk in İzmir Province, Turkey. It was built in the 10th century BC on the site of the former Arzawan capital by Attic and Ionian Greek colonists. During the Classical Greek era, it was one of twelve cities that were members of the Ionian League. The city came under the control of the Roman Republic in 129 BC.
Then we proceed to the House of the Virgin Mary is a Catholic shrine located on Mt. Koressos in the vicinity of Ephesus, 7 kilometres (4.3 mi) from Selçuk in Turkey.
we will have time for lunch which is included. We would like to introduce you to the local cultural aspects of Ephesus by showing handmade Carpet & rug Art done. through traditional weaving in the Teaching Village and you’ll enjoy many Ephesus Ceramics as well.
The Temple of Artemis or Artemision, also known as the Temple of Diana, was a Greek temple dedicated to an ancient, local form of the goddess Artemis (associated with Diana, a Roman goddess). It was located in Ephesus. It was completely rebuilt twice, once after a devastating flood and three hundred years later after an act of arson, and in its final form was one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World. By 401 AD it had been ruined or destroyed. Only foundations and fragments of the last temple remain at the site.
We had an amazing tour with Selcuk. He provided us with a fascinating look at Ephesus and Kusadasi. He was very knowledgeable and accommodating. We learned so much about the area and had a wonderful day touring and shopping. The tour operator was incredible in reaching out to us when our port day changed due to another ship. It was extremely easy to find and meet the guide.
We had a great day out with Ozgur and our driver Memet. We went to all the historical sites and Ozgur was very informative about all the history. Our family were very well looked after. Great day.
We had a great day with Ozgur and Memet our driver. We went to Ephesus and House of Mary and also a special stop to a quality leather bağ and coat Shop. Özgür was very informative and knew everything about the history. Our family had a wonderful day. Highly recommend.
Būlent Aslan is the best guide ever! He’s so knowledgeable, and he has perfected the timing of the tours before it gets crowded and crazy! He’s very funny, has been to so many countries and he can answer any questions you ask. We literally were just chauffeured around without any worries, he handled everything else. This is one of my favorite tours. If you ever decide to visit Kusadasi, ask for him. He will also travel anywhere if you need a translator.
We enjoy the visit in Efeso The expertise guide Ercument Ozden make the visit a quality experience. We lunched on a nice restaurant
Ercument has been the BEST guide we could have gotten, I’ve never learned so much from a guide and he was very knowledgeable on the city/ shops/ Ephesus and all the landmarks we passed and visited. He was always teaching us something and took us to the best spots and best pictures in every place and let us have free time at each spot to shop and take our own pictures, the driver was very prompt and easy and fast rides. 11/10 would recommend
Our Guide Ergamente was knowledgeable,friendly,and made our trip so far our best day of our trip. We loved the tour of Ephesus, the House of the Virgin Mary and of course a most enjoyable Lunch. A very educational tour. The stops made for weaving/silk carpets, pottery, Turkish delights and the leather fashion show were a great introduction to the culture. Our feedback on these stops is that we were not informed that there would be efforts made by the respective hosts to encourage us to buy luxury (greater that $500 US) items. We felt a bit overwhelmed and were not sure how this might be delaying the rest of our tour. A fixed amount of time should be allocated at each stop to ensure a smooth schedule and an exit opportunity if you are not interested in purchasing. This should be added as part of the description of the tour. Overall our guide Ergamente was amazing and we would highly recommend him and Smart Turkey Tours to our friends and family.
Skip the big group cruise excursion and book this private tour instead! The customer service was excellent. Smart Turkey Tours answered all of my questions via email prior to our booking. We were able to design exactly what we wanted to see with the time available in port. Our tour guide, Selchuk, met us at the port with a driver in a very comfortable and air conditioned mini-van. They had cold bottled water available as needed. He had a big map in the van where he shared history and geography between each of the sites. He was incredibly knowledgeable and our tour was fantastic. I can't recommend this tour enough and it was a great value (cheaper than the cruise excursion). One of the true highlights of our trip.
The tour was fantastic. The tour guide, Gonca, was supposed to meet us at the port at 9:30am. We were a bit early and left the gate before 9am and she was already waiting for us with sign of my name. We got on a private van and drove to house of Mary. Nice scenery along the way and the site was nice if you are religious. We then went to Ephesus and that was the highlight of the day. Gonca took us from hill top to the bottom, patiently and humorously explained everything to us with a lot of Greek mythology thrown in. Unforgettable experience. We went to a nice place for a Turkish lunch then. It was also great with Gonca explaining each dish. In fact, it was the place where they make carpet. Gonca asked for our preference. Since we didn’t care for carpet making, she didn’t push us to watch a demonstration to waste our time. We then went back to port. Gonca gave us good directions on where to go shopping and how to get back on ship. All in all, a very nice day thanks to Gonca and the very polite driver. Highly recommend.
Our family of 7 (including two girls under 12) did the Private Biblical Ephesus Tour as a cruise shore excursion. We absolutely loved it! We went to the House of the Virgin Mary, Ephesus Ancient City, and the Basilica of St. John. Our guide Selçuk was so knowledgeable, personable and attentive to our group. He also was quite funny! He gave us detailed explanations and historical insights for each of the sites. We learned so much about each place from him. He also gave us great insights and background during the drives between places. In addition, he made sure that our girls felt included and paid special attention to them with stories that catered to their interests. He also knew all the best picture spots. It was a hot day (which was unusual for October), and Selçuk always made sure to stop in shady spots when speaking with us. Lunch was included, and it was delicious. Our girls also loved the carpet demonstration at the end. We even got a free gift at the end of the tour! We highly recommend Smart Turkey Tours and Selçuk as the guide. Smart Turkey Tours was one of the only tour groups that included entrance fees to the different sites in their overall price, and we couldn’t have asked for a better guide than Selçuk. When we come back, we will definitely go with Smart Turkey Tours for another tour.
The guide (Selcuk) and driver (Oscar) were terrific!! Amazing history and the lunch was delicious! The tour was very informative and family friendly. Would highly recommend! 5 stars all around!
This tour was one of the best excursions we have ever had. Everything about it worked out extremely well. Prior to the excursion we learned of an opportunity to add Paul's Grotto to the existing itinerary. I sent an e-mail and heard back very quickly from their Marketing Director, Yeliz. She was so prompt and professional, it gave me great confidence in the things to come. Our tour guide, Selcuk met us at the cruise terminal and led us to a nearby location where the driver could pick us up. The minivan was very comfortable and Selcuk shared a great deal of information with us as we drove to Ephesus. He was very familiar with the sites and the great history behind each one. He also was very considerate to help us avoid the big crowds and all the perils that comes with a tour like this.
Excellent tour guide, very knowledgeable and passionate about the Turkish history and the ruins. I’d highly recommend it.
The visit to Turkey and the tour with Gokhan was amazing. He was very informative and he was always making sure we were engaged.
Fantastic tour and super personal. Picked us up promptly and explained everything to us in detail. Best tour ever. Thank you Gokhan.
Selçuk was an excellent tour guide. He is so knowledgeable and has a good sense of humor. He accommodated all of our requests and was very considerate of our needs. We got to see all the sites we requested. One that was particularly special was seeing the Cave of St Paul’s cave.
We had an amazing time with Celjuk. Our group included multiple Biblical and church history scholars so we were grateful for the added excursion to Paul’s grotto! His historical and cultural knowledge was vast and he kept our energy up even as the day was long. Lunch was delicious too! A wonderful taste of Turkey.
The visit exceeded our expectations, we didn't speak perfect English, however, the guide made an effort to understand and explain us as clearly as possible. Furthermore, we will have lots of family photos, as the guide offered to take lots of photos and was always careful to explain things to us in the shade due to the heat. We highly recommend the guided tour.
This tour exceeded my expetations, I have always tought that Turkey was a really unsafe place but thanks to the kind and magnificient tour guide Sal we could enjoy this amazing country and I would recommend and repeat everything from the ruins of Ephesus to the restaurant.
This was one of the best experiences of my life. The tour guide Sal was fenomenal, really caring and spoke fluent and easy english to understand.Someday I would like to repeat everything from Ephesus to the restaurant.
We had a wonderful tour. We had a driver and a tour guide, Ender. They met us right off the ship. We received so much information about the sites. We had a good lunch. The private tour for 5 of us was a great value. I highly recommend this tour.
My family of 5 (myself, husband and our children 21, 19 and 16) all had a wonderful private tour on our port day in Kusadasi. Our guide Serdar was friendly, knowledgeable and engaging for our entire day. Our driver (I forget his name) was a great driver, keeping us on time and navigating the roads smoothly. Serdar was proactive, checked the internet and noted there was only a few people at the House of the Virgin Mary so he took us there first. We had no wait at this beautiful, peaceful place. Then we went to Ephesus where Serdar toured with us, explaining everything, finding shade (it was nearly 100°!) where he could. After he took us to the rug factory for a delicious traditional Turkish lunch. I am vegan and they brought out special dishes just for me. After lunch, we watched the rug weaving demonstration and saw the final results. The store obviously would like us to purchase a rug but we weren't pressured at all. Finally we visited the Temple of Artemis before Serdar brought us back to the port in plenty of time before we needed to board the cruise again. We had time to shop and get ice cream which was a great end to our day. I definitely recommend this tour, especially with Serdar!
We had an amazing but HOT day. Our guide Ercument was very informative of our places we visited and our driver excellent. They were waiting for us once we disembarked and the a/c van was great for in between our places. Turkish lunch was delicious.
Gokhan was our tour guide for the entire 6+ hours and he was one of the most gracious, hospitable and knowledgeable guides we have had in over 30 years of international travel. He answered candidly our side questions about the government, economy and the residents’ level of happiness. His historical knowledge of the Ephesus ruins was comprehensive and fascinating. We ended up buying several hand woven wool carpets from a local, family business far from the tourist center. Gokham is the best!
Selçuk was amazing. He was very knowledgeable and patient with all of our questions and changes to itenerary. It was a fun trip and I am so glad we did it.
Fantastic private guided tour by Mr. Ercument. We identified quickly in the port and took us everywhere in a impeccable comfortable new van. We visited Ephesus and Virgin Mary sites plus bonus shopping areas. We were back in to the cruise port on time. I highly recommended to book via this team: SmartTurkeyTours.com
Booked this tour with smart turkey and all communication at the booking was good and prompt replies. Easy to book and customize your tour. Our guide was Metin who was so knowledgeable and informed us of all places we visited and the history behind it. Very accommodating and also helped with taking our pictures along the way. Would highly recommend this company. Also the van was super comfortable and luxurious.
Smart Turkey Tours is extremely well run. Very helpful and professional. Our guide Turgut was just wonderful! Highly recommend him!
Thanks to our guide Dennis, my first introduction to Turkey 🇹🇷 was amazing. His incredible knowledge of the history of Ephesus has inspired me to visit again. The scenic travel is beautiful. Highlights were the plants, the animals and Turkish food. Thank you Dennis! 😊
Our guide Mithad is punctual , very knowledgeable of history and the areas Kusadasi, Ephesus , House of Virgin Mary, and additionally he knows many plants. We received his friendly and caring reception. We are provided with a spacious nice Mercedes van and the driver drives safely.
Very knowledgeable tour guide, Mr. Deniz. Detailed historical information for each point. And very patient, good personality! I fully recommend this tour and ask for Mr. Deniz as your tour guide. Now I’m more impressive about Turkish history!
What an incredible day in Ephesus. If you are looking for a full day of history please consider booking a tour with Smart Turkey Tours. Our tour guide Selcuk was simply outstanding. Can’t thank you enough for the incredible knowledge you shared with us.
Excellent tour guide and the lunch was wonderful!! Sure loved the sights and the knowledge of our tour guide. However, I gave it 4 stars because he took us to a carpet rug making shop trying to sell rugs. Spent way to much time there and would have preferred seeing more sights with our limited time.
Yeliz and the team at Smart Turkey tours were exceptional right from the start. My wife had an injury and they accommodated her so very well. As a guide he has excellent knowledge and understanding of the area and it's history. Being flexible with the tour is also a big advantage over cruise booked tours which stick to the program strictly no matter how overly busy each venue is. We really enjoyed our tour with Smart Turkey and would highly recommend them
What a great experience! We were picked up in a Full size van with a driver and a guide. We got to see the Ephesus Ruins and House of Mary. Very clever, the tour guide called ahead to find out which was less crowded, so we got to things faster. He took us to a beautiful pottery shop and leather shop. Neither I or the other couple needed a new rug, but we could have seen Turkish Rugs. Beautiful coastal scenery at the end of the tour. Our tour guide was very knowledgable. I’d book him again and highly reccommend him - Yeliz is his name. I’m from the USA and the other couple was from Australia and we were on the Celebrity Cruise ship.
I went on this tour solo and it was only myself and another guest. Our guide Safak was knowledgeable and gave us enough information and time at each place. Because it was two of us, we were able to get through the tour fairly quickly. Lunch was ok, not a buffet but small amount of food. After finishing the tour, Safak was able to guide me to where to shop. A great day seeing Kusadasi/Ephesus!
We had a group tour organized by Mr. Anıl and our guide was Mr. Cihan, who spoke russian. Planning the tour was made easier by the prompt and detailed feedback I received. We had a large group - around 50 people. The tour was a great experience; all the participants enjoyed beautiful Ephesus and remained impressed.
Excellent experience with Olgu. This friendly tour guide was well prepared, friendly, courteous and respectful. He was extremely knowledgeable and engaging. Wonderful experience overall.
Gokhan was an excellent guide. His knowledge of the history was exceptional. We were all amazed at the areas he took us to including the rug training center
Our guide was Gokhan and he was amazing. He was informative, patient and funny. His explanations and attention to details were on point. We loved the private/small tour which gave us the limited time off the ship to experience the bulk of the ruins. The pottery exhibit and hand made rug co-operative along with the delicious lunch were above par. Our introduction to Turkey could not have been any better. Thank you 😊
We were picked up at the cruise port by our guide and driver. They could not have been any nicer to us! Very knowledgeable about the local area and of course about the ancient city of Ephesus. The van looked like new inside and out. Overall, this tour company and our guide Gokan exceeded all expectations. Truly an excellent value.
We really enjoyed it. Well done to the tour leader. Will highly recommend. As soon as we arrived we found the tour leader waiting for us.
Just a great experience, professional, friendly, lots of knowledge. We were glad to book a private tour with the family, nice Van with airco, nice seats, good driver. Lots of flexibility and not to be depended on a group. I did many tours and can really recommend this nice/small & personal agency. Great tour guide Olgu which made it really a great day in Kusadasi
This is the best tour ever! Selcuk tailored our day for us Mary’s House, St John’s tomb, Ephesus, Row Houses, Rug factory, St Paul’s cave, simply outstanding. Great car, driver, water supplied!, lunch included.
This was a fantastic informative tour with a fantastic guide (blue sky) who was extremely knowledgeable. We highly recommend this tour.
I booked excursion with Smart Turkey Tours for our cruise stop in Kusadasi. I choose Ephesus and Sirince Village Tour, to reduce the cost I found other people from our cruise group to share with my husband and I and formed a small 8 people group. Guide and driver met us on time in port and took us to Ephesus for guided tour, he spoke perfect English, was knowledgeable, friendly, answered all our questions, before during and after tour. Gave us some free time for photos. Then we went to Sirince village where he took us around, told us about village life, offered traditional coffee and we agreed to try it, then some free time for shopping. Enjoyed walking around quaint village, great shopping and views. After that we went to the Carpet Weaving Education Center where we had tasty meal, learned about carpet weaving process and some carpets were shown in the show room. Sale people weren't pushy, it didn't take long and no one from our group ended up buying a carpet. We were back in Kusadasi by the cruise ship still with time to shop and explore Kusadasi itself. We all enjoyed our day and I highly recommend booking with that company.
Great tour, I would recommend Smart Turkey Tours. We arrenged for tour Ephesus, house of virgin Mary, artemisa temple and lunch. Our guide Selçuk was very friendly and knowledgeable. Me and my family had a great time with him while the excursion. An amazing day to remember. Everything's orginized as we were told. Thank you Smart Turkey Tour.
Our tour of Turkey with Taner was phenomenal. It exceeded all our expectations. His archaelogical knowledge of Ephesus added so much to our tour. We highly recommend booking with this company!!
We arranged a tour for 8 people to be picked up from the port of Kusadasi. From the very beginning, everything was great. Our guide was very personable and knowledgeable. Because we were a small group and we left the port early, we were able to beat the crowds to the House of the Virgin Mary and the Ephesus ruins. We had a delicious lunch at a rug co-operative followed by a demo of silk making and rug weaving. Our guide was very clear that we did not need to listen to the rug sales pitch or buy anything. All in all, I was left with wanting to return to Turkey and learn more.
We had amazing day in Ephesus with my girlfriend. Our driver and guide so kind people. Our vehicle was a super nice. We loved the history told us by Mr. Selcuk. I recommend anyone who will visit Ephesus. Go there there is so much to see
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